Safety means to prevent edgewise separation of door and jamb



May 31, 1955 G. G. FOX 2,709,612

SAFETY MEANS TO PREVENT EDGEWISE SEPARATION OF DOOR AND JAMB Filed Feb.25. 1950 INVENTOR George GtFwc.

BY E

ATTORNEY nite 1 States atent 0 SAFETY MEANS TO PREVENT EDGEWISE SEP-ARATION OF DOOR AND JAMB George G. For, Meriden, Conn.

Application February 23, 1950, Serial No. 145,691

7 Claims. (Cl. 292-300) This invention relates to safety provisions fordoor constructions; and more particularly it relates to closure securingor coupling means for use in automobile door constructions, whereby theaccidental opening of the door due to frame distortion may beeffectively prevented.

in certain specific modifications, practical applications of theinvention may incorporate the aforesaid closure securing features asWell as providing an anti-rattle device, whereby a single device mayserve to perform both functions.

The invention has particularly useful application 1n automobile doorconstructions as a safety provision against injury to passengersresulting from accidental opening of the door by distortion of the carframe occurring in a collision. in a considerable number of theaccidents resulting in injury to a passenger, it has been observed thatthe injury was incurred because the passenger was thrown out of a doorwhich was forced open at the time of the accident, as distinguished frominjuries which are incurred within the automobile itself.

Investigations of such accidents have disclosed that in many cases thefailure permitting an automobile door to swing open under the impact ofa collision is due not to the forcing of the latch but to a flexure ofthe automobile frame resulting in a longitudinal or edgewise separationof the adjacent edge faces of the door and frame in their common plane.This separation causes a momentary inability of the latch to maintainlocking engagement with its cooperating striker plate, a reactionapparently not appreciated heretofore, and the door under suchcircumstances is accordingly free to swing open. Confirmation of theprobability of such an explanation is found in the fact that notinfrequently an occupant of the car involved in a collision has beenthrown out of the car and yet, when examination of the wreck was made,it was found that all of the doors were still latched or closed andstill in operable condition.

It is a purpose of the present invention, therefore, to provide a doorconstruction of greatly increased structural rigidity over thatpossessed by present, conventional types in respect to preventing theaforesaid longitudinal separation of the door from its cooperatingframe. In order to accomplish this purpose, the present inventioncornprises the provision of closure securing safety means including adoor member which projects beyond a free or unhinged edge of the door,and cooperating socket means in the door jamb for reception therein ofthe door member when the door is closed. In order to provide the desiredinterlocking engagement, the outer free or projecting end of the doormember is off-set from its root portion in a direction vertically and/orinwardly with respect to the cooperating door jamb to provide anoverhang, and the socket means is correspondingly formed in the jarnb toreceive the off-set door member.

In a typical embodiment of the inventive concept, such means may consistof an in-turned flange running along at least the vertical free edge ofthe door and preferably along the upper and lower edges also, thein-turned leg ICC of the flange being received, when the door is closed,in a cooperating slot or groove marginally spaced from the edges of theframe or casing.

In a presently preferred form, however, the closure securing meanscomprises a lug or dovetail member secured to a free edge of the door soas to project outwardly beyond and away from such edge a short distance,this member being adapted and arranged for reception in a cooperatingsocket member in the frame. Preferably the lug and its cooperatingsocket are placed as close to the door latch members as is convenientlypossible to effect maximum resistance to edgewise separation at thatpoint.

It will be appreciated that in order to be capable of providing anyreally practically effective resistance to this longitudinal or edgewiseseparation, the securing means provided must have considerablestructural strength both in itself and in the manner by which it isattached or built into the door construction, since a very considerablestrain can be placed upon the means by the heavy impact which may besustained in a collision. It is a further feature of the inventiontherefore to provide closure securing means which, while economical toproduce and mechanically simple to incorporate into door con struction,will effectively transmit any impact load to the door structure itself,so that the purpose of the invention will not be defeated by mechanicalfailure caused by the separation of the closure securing means from thedoor and frame respectively.

In order to illustrate more explicitly several specific embodiments ofwhich the present invention is capable, reference will be had to theaccompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that suchdrawings are purely illustrative and are not intended to restrict thescope of the present invention except as required by the accompanyingclaims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a door and door frame, thedoor being in partly open position, showing therelative positioning ofthe closure securing means;

Fig. 2 is aside elevational view of the securing members of Fig. 1,parts being broken away to show them in the engaged position which theyassume when the door is fully closed;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a front elevational view of the door member of the closuresecuring means;

Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view in plan of securing means within thescope of the invention incorporated in a typical automobile doorconstruction;

Fig. 6 is an end view of the door member of the closure securing meansshown in Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a side View of the socket member within which the door memberof Fig. 6 is received;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary cross sectional view transversely of the planeof a door showing a modified form of door and frame construction builtspecially to provide interlockim engagement between the two; and

Figs. 9A, 9B and 9C illustrate specific modifications of the door memberof the closure securing; means embodying the invention.

One embodiment of the invention, illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4 moreparticularly, is adapted for use in doors and. frames of sufficientlyheavy construction at the vertical unhinged edge of the door to permitthe attachment of the interlocking members directly to the door and?frame edge faces, respectively. In this instance, a door 10 is built up,in a conventional manner, of an outer panel 11 and a peripheral flange12 secured thereto at substantially right angles to form an edge face ofsubstantial width to which the door member of the interlocking closuremeans can be secured. This door member is in the form of a lug member 13having a mounting base 14 and an integrally connected head portion 15projecting outwardly therefrom. A rectangular aperture 16 is cut intoflange 12, and the base plate of lug member 13 is secured by means ofmachine screws 17 to the inner face of flange 12 so that its head 15projects outwardly through the aperture. In the present instance, thehead 15 of lug member 13 is of generally trapezoidal cross section inthe plane of the door, with the longer base of the trapezoid at theouter end of the lug. This produces an overhang having upper and lowerfaces 18 on the head which flare outwardly to the outer face 15a of head15 from a relatively narrow neck portion 19 adjacent base 14 of the lug.The length of head 15 transversely of the plane of the door ispreferably as great as the width of flange 12 will permit in order thatthe flared or divergent surfaces 1% present substantial areastransversely of the plane of the door.

The socket member 20 into the mating cavity of which the head of lug 13passes when the door is closed is recessed into the door frame or casing21 at a point back from the edge face 26 of the frame a short distanceso as to leave a marginal portion of the frame between the socket member20 and the edge face 26. The socket member is then retained in itsrecess by screws 22 and 23. Socket member 20 is provided with a socket24 which opens both upon the outer face 25 of frame 21 as well as towardthe edge face 26, and a slot 26a, in registry with the adjacent openingin socket member 20, is cut into the edge face and margin of the frame.The upper and lower surfaces 27 of socket 24 flare inwardly toward edgeface 26 at substantially the same angles as the corresponding faces 18of lug 13 with which they are adapted to mate in close, transverse,sliding engagement with opening and closing of the door. It is apparent,therefore, that once head 15 of the door lug has passed into socket 20,the latter acts as a positive restraint against movement of the headedgewise of casing 21 and this in turn, of course, prevents the edgewiseseparation of the door and the casing.

In order to facilitate entry of lug 13 into socket 24 as the door isclosed, the leading edges 15b of head 15 are tapered towards each otherto give it a slight Wedge shape. In order, also, that the lug andcooperating socket member may serve as an anti-rattle device, the socketis provided at its rear with spring bearing plate 28 against which face15a of the lug presses to hold the mating surfaces 18 and 27 of the lugand socket, respectively, in close abutment.

It will be noted that the design of the closure members is such thatsubstantial areas of the interlocking members are in close contact whenthe door is closed, with the result that any force tending to separatethe door and casing edgewise will be distributed over these areas. Wherethe door and frame are of relatively heavy metal construction, as hasbeen assumed in the foregoing discussion, the use of machine screws orbolts for attaching the closure members to their respective edge facesof the door and frame will provide a sufficiently strong connection formost purposes. Where, however, such method of attachment does notprovide the necessary strength, backing or bracing members along theadjacent edges of the door and frame can be employed, and the closuremembers secured to such backing members in order to dis tribute the loadover relatively large areas at the edges of the door and frame,respectively.

In any event, it will be apparent that where either of the componentmembers (lug or socket) of the novel closure securing means is of suchconformation and, is so arranged as to have a portion thereof engagedbehind at least a part of the relatively heavy structural frame memberby which is it carried, as is true of both said members in theembodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4, instead ofbeing merely secured by screws or likefastening means to an outer orfront face thereof, an applied force'tending to produce the describedundesirable edgewise separation of the door from the door jamb does notact in a manner tending to pull out or shear olf such fastening means.On the contrary, application of such force automatically has theopposite result because the tensional stress under which such closuresecuring member is thereby placed produces a corresponding thrustagainst its structural support in a direction tending to maintain thedesired normal relation of the parts wherein the regular door latchfunctions properly, while at the same time no strain is put upon saidfastening means by such applied separating force. Thus, the lug member13 has its base plate 14 engaged behind flange 12 of the door frame onwhich said plate is held by screws 17, while its head portion 15,integrally connected to said base plate by the reduced neck portion 19extending through aperture 16 in said plate, projects forwardly from theedge face of the door sutficiently far to enter the mating cavity ofsocket member 20 in the door jamb, upon closing the door. Thus the lugmember is interlocked with said socket member 20 which, similarly, isset into the door jamb 21 behind the edge face 26 thereof to which it issecured by screws 23. In this construction and arrangement of parts, andwith the door closed to interlock the closure securing members, part ofthe door flange 12 by which the lug member is supported, and also partof the door jamb 21 by which the socket member 2t) is supported, areinterposed or included between extremities of the coupling meansconsidered as a whole; and, more specifically both are, in addition,included between the enlarged extremities of said lug member, consideredby itself, as is best shown in Fig. 2. By reason of this constructionand arrangement of the parts, an accidentally applied force acting inthe plane of the door and door jamb and tending to separate them edge-Wise, obviously produces compressive reaction thrusts of the saidclosure securing members against the door flange door jamb,respectively. These thrusts oppose such separating tendency, and theyare exerted upon said flange and jamb directly, not through the securingscrews 17 and 23. The relatively great structural strength of the framemembers of the door and door jamb or casing, in conjunction with that ofthe interlocking closure securing members or coupling means which, asshown, are themselves of sturdy construction, is thus utilized toespecially good advantage in that embodiment of the inventionillustrated in Figs. 1 to 4. But the advantages attending utilization ofthis important principle of the invention are realized in substantialthough less degree even where only one of said closure members has aportion thereof engaged behind a part of the structural member by whichit is carried, so that said structural member is included between thecoupling means extremities. And this also holds true where, in the caseof a lug member having enlarged extremities, a part of only thatstructural member which supports such lug member is interposed orincluded between those extremities.

In automobiles, the body is constructed of pressed panels of relativelylight gage sheet metal, these panels being supported at necessary pointsupon rigid frame members of much heavier construction. It is usually notpractical, therefore, to secure the closure members only to the lightsheet metal panels since these may be easily bent and distorted, if notactually ruptured, at the point of attachment when the closure membersare subjected to stresses such as those here contemplated. Fig. 5illustrates one manner by which the closure members may be installed ina typical automobile door construction consisting of a door 30 and aframe 31 whereby the foregoing difrlculties may be avoided. Door 30 isof conventional, composite, box-like construction consisting of an outerpanel 32 reinforced by a flanged annular member 33 of pressed sheetmetal secured to the inner face of panel 32 by crimping and welding theedges 32a of the latter about an outwardly directed flare 33a of member33. As viewed in cross section, the flanged portion of member 33 isrelatively wide or deep trans versely of the plane of the door and isangularly bent to provide a series of connected vertical faces 33b, 33c,33d and 33e. The purpose of this is, of course, to increase the columnarstrength of the member. The portion of frame 31 also shown in crosssection in Fig. 5 is typical of a conventional upright or center post ofa car. This consists of an outer, light gage, pressed, sheet metal skin34 used primarily for fairing purposes to give a desired externalappearance to the car. This skin, however, is backed up by a channelmember 35 of very heavy construction which, of course, carries most ofthe load. One leg of the channel 35 is stepped to provide flanges 35a,35b, and skin 34 is also stepped to pro vide a series of connected,vertical faces 34a, 34b, 34c, and 34d, which mate with the steppedsurfaces 33b, 33c, 33d, and 33a, respectively, of door 3% Space is leftbetween legs 35a, 35b, of channel 35 and the respectively adjacent faces34b, 340 of the skin 34 in order to provide a rabbet strip foraccommodating the various antirattle, dovetail and latch striker platefittings commonly employed.

The closure securing members of this invention which are particularlysuitable for use in this type of installation are generally similar tothose previously described. As before, a door lug 36 is installed fromthe inside of the door so that its head 37 projects through an aper turecut in edge face 330! of flange 33. As shown in Fig. 6, lug 36 isprovided with a somewhat heavier base 38 than that of the lug shown inFigs. 1 to 4, so as to provide greater stiffness in the member. In thisinstance too, the base 38 extends for a greater distance above and belowthe horizontal edges of the aperture in face 33d, parallel to said face,and the vertical extent of the aperture itself is kept to a minimum.Machine screws passing through face 33d into threaded holes 38a in base38 serve to hold the lug in position and to permit slight verticaladjustment for alignment purposes. The combination of the long, heavybase 33 of lug 36 and the flanging of member 33 produces a structurehaving great strength transversely of the face 330'. The cooperatingsocket member 39 into which the head 37 of lug 36 passes as the door isclosed is inserted, in a direction perpendicular to the plane of frame31, into an aperture cut in face 341). The socket member thus nests inthe pocket formed by flanges 35a, 35b of channel 35 and face 340 of skin34. Socket member 39 is provided with a socket it having a restrictedentryway 41 (Fig. 7) opening edgewise of the socket member similar tothat of a socket member 2t? shown in Figs. 1 to 4, so that head 37 oflug 36 can enter and leave the socket transversely of the plane of thedoor, but is prevented from any motion longitudinally thereof within thesocket other than that allowed by the spring pressure plate 40a at therear of the socket which presses against the end face of door lug head37. Flange 340 is slotted to provide an aperture in registry withentryway 41 of socket member 39 for receiving the restricted neckportion 37a of lug 36. Holes 42 are bored through socket member 39 aboveand below the socket 4t) and registering holes 43, 44, are provided invertical face 340 and flange 35a, respectively. Holes 44 are tapped andscrews 45 pass through face 34c, holes 42, and into threaded engagementwith holes i lto secure the socket member directly to the heavy channelIn this manner the longitudinal stresses imposed on the socket memberare transmitted to the channel and very little if any stress is placedon the comparatively weak skin 3 At the upper and lower ends of socketmember 39 there are provided projecting ears or tabs 46 which lie inreceesses in vertical face 3412 made for that purpose. Screws passthrough holes 4-7 in these tabs and thread into registering holes in theface Mb to hold the outer face of socket member 39 flush with face 341;.Since there is little stress on the socket member transversely of thecar,

6 the strength of the skin panel is suflicient for this purpose,although these screws could, if desired be extended all the way to andinto engagement with threaded holes in flange 35!) of channel 35.

In order to facilitate alignment during assembly or replacement of thesocket member 39, it may be desirable in some instances to employ astandard type of nut plate carrying a threaded nut member capable oflimited translational movement for screws 45 to engage, instead oftapping directly into channel 35. In such case, the nut plate is mountedon the inner face of flange 35a and oversize holes are cut through theflange at points adjacent the nuts to permit screws t? to pass freelythrough the flange and into engagement with the nuts held against theinner side of channel 35 by the nut supporting plates.

The foregoing description has all pertained to a type of interlockingsecuring means which may be easily substituted for the conventional typeof non-interlocking, anti-rattle, door dovetails employed on present-dayautomobiles. A modified form of the invention, however, contemplates theincorporation of interlocking securing means into the original designand construction of the automobile itself. Such construction isillustrated in Fig. 8 in which door St is provided with an outer panel5i. whose periphery is flanged inwardly along its vertical, upper andlower edges to provide a curved overhang 52 around the greater part ofthree sides of the door. The door frame 53, in turn, has a slot orindentation 54 running around and marginally spaced from the edge of theframe for the reception of the in-turned flange 52 of the door. Byrunning the flange along the full extent of the vertical. edge of thedoor and at least a substantial part of the upper and lower edges, achannel construction is obtained which adds to the strength of theflange in preventing edgewise separation of the door and frame.

From the foregoing typical illustrations it can be seen that variousother specific modifications of the general construction herein proposedmay be readily devised. As shown for example in Figs. 9A, 9B and 9C, thedoor lug may assume any one of a large variety of configurations which,in cross section, take the form of an L or a T, or the lug may have acylindrical head, in which case it will have a circular cross section.The aperture in the cooperating socket member will, of course, assumethe profile of the particular lug employed. Quite apparently also therelative positions of the lug and socket members can be interchangedfrom that specifically shown in the drawings so that the socket issecured to the door while the lug is secured to the frame.

Similarly, several modifications of the in -turned door flangeconstruction in which one or more relatively short lengths of flangespaced at various points along the edge of the door may be employed inplace of the hereinabove described extension of the continuous flangearound three sides of the door. Each of such relatively short lengths offlange should, however, be reinforced by suitable webs or fillets toresist the tendency of the flange to straighten out when subjected tostress.

What is claimed is:

1. In a vehicle door construction including a metal door and door frameeach having a structural member of substantial strength adjacent theUnhinged vertical edge of said door, closure securing safety means forpreventing temporary, accidental edgewise separation of said door andframe along said vertical edge by relative movement between the two whendisposed in their common plane, which comprises a lug member and acooperating socket member respectively carried by such structuralmembers, adapted for interlocking engagement upon closing said door;said lug member having a base plate, a head and a neck connecting saidhead to said plate, and being secured by said plate to one of saidstructural members at the unhinged edge of said door, with said platedisposed parallel to the edge face of the door and with said neck andhead projecting outwardly edgewise of the door, said socket member beingcarried by the other structural member in position to receive saidprojecting head when the door is closed, at least one of said structuralmembers having a portion disposed intermediate the head and base plateof said lug member when said door is closed and being apertured topermit the neck of said lug member to pass therethrough; the head ofsaid lug having a portion which overhangs the neck and said socketmember being correspondingly formed to provide mating surfaces ofsubstantial area disposed transversely of the plane of the door whichpermit sliding contact with each other in the direction of relativemotion during normal opening and closing of the door but which resistedgewise separation of said door and frame in their common plane.

2. Safety means for vehicle doors as defined in claim 1, wherein thebase plate of said lug member is positioned behind its structural memberand secured thereto, and said structural member is apertured to providean opening of sufiicient size to permit the neck and head of said lug toproject therethrough but of insutficient size to permit said base plateto pass therethrough.

3. Safety means for vehicle doors as defined in claim 2, wherein saidsocket member is positioned behind the structural member by which it iscarried, and has overhanging portions defining a restricted entrywayinto said socket member from an edge face thereof, and said structuralmember having a slot which opens on the outer face of the door and is inregistry with the restricted entryway to said socket member.

4. Safety means for vehicle doors as defined in claim 1, wherein saidsocket member is positioned behind the structural member by which it iscarried, and has overhanging portions defining a restricted entrywayinto said socket member from an edge face thereof, and said structuralmember having a slot which opens on the outer face of the door and is inregistry with the restricted entryway to said socket member.

5. Safety securing means adapted for use in a vehicle door constructionin conjunction with manually releasable latch mechanism normally holdingthe door closed, in order to prevent accidental disengagement of thelatch by forcible edgewise separation of the door from its frame at thelocality of latch engagement, which securing means comprises a pair ofmembers having securing provision adapting them to be secured to astructural member of a door adjacent its free edge and to the adjacentcooperating portion of a structural member of the door frame,respectively, and having complementarily formed surfaces which, when thepair are so secured and the door is closed, interlock to resist suchseparation; the dimensioning of said pair of members and the arrangementof said securing provision being such that, when the door is closed,both said structural members have a substantial portion thereofinterposed between said points of securement.

6. Safety securing means adapted for use in a vehicle door constructionin conjunction with manually releasable latch mechanism normally holdingthe door closed, in order to prevent accidental disengagement of thelatch by forcible edgewise separation of the door from its frame at thelocality of latch engagement, which securing means comprises a pair ofmembers having securing provision adapting them to be secured to astructural member of a door adjacent its free edge and to the adjacentcooperating portion of a structural member of the door frame,respectively, and having complementarily formed surfaces which, when thepair are so secured and the door is closed, interlock to resist suchseparation; one of said pair of members being a lug member having anoverhanging head and a base plate integrally united therewith by a neckportion, said base plate being adapted to be secured behind an edge faceof one of said structural members with said neck and head projectingthrough an aperture in said edge face, at least one of said structuralmembers having a portion disposed intermediate the head and base plateof said lug member when said door is closed; while the second member ofsaid pair is a socket member adapted to be secured to the other of saidstructural members and is formed with a cavity adapted and arranged,when the socket member is so secured, to be entered by the head of saidlug member for interlocking the pair of members.

7. Safety securing means as defined in claim 6, wherein said socketmember is adapted to be secured behind an edge face of said otherstructural member, and has its cavity wall adjacent said edge faceslotted for registry, when the socket member is so secured, withcorresponding slotting of said edge face to permit the lug member headto enter said cavity.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS915,873 Mosher Mar. 23, 1909 1,192,733 Bennett July 25, 1916 1,654,163Evans Dec. 27, 1927 2,100,591 Haberstump Nov. 30, 1937 2,105,216 EvulichIan. 11, 1938 2,321,409 Moore June 8, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS 294,334 GreatBritain -2 July 26, 1928 380,660 France Oct. 14, 1907 573,689 FranceMar. 16, 1924

